UTICA, NY - The UCHC Men's Hockey Championship was up for grabs last night in the Adirondack Bank Center as the Utica Pioneers and Geneseo Knights went to war in what was the first of many conference title tilts to come between the two New York powerhouses. In a season series that was defined by fast starts, it was the Knights who had the edge early on in the conference final, netting four fast goals to take a 4-0 lead into the first intermission. The Pioneers would battle back, getting the next three scores to make it 4-3, but the Knights eventually regained their composure and captured three late scores to claim the UCHC Championship by a 7-3 final.
 
Shane Murphy (Oriskany, NY/Danbury Hat Tricks (NAHL)), Ben Schultheis (Mount Juliet, TN/Ferris State University (NCAA DI)), and Jakob Breault (Acton Vale, QC/Alaska-Fairbanks (NCAA DI)) netted the trio of second period scores for the team, jolting the building back to life as the Pioneers pulled to within one. The goals all came within a six-minute span as the team erased what was a sizable lead for the Knights. Murphy had a chance to knot the game at four shortly after, but was stopped on the doorstep thanks to an outrageous save from the Knights' goalkeeper Harris.
 
The Pioneers had lots of shots to level the playing field but couldn't net that fourth goal as the Knights put away two more to salt away the second.
 
In the third period, the Knights fended off a big Pioneer push, notching one more score to put the game out of reach at 7-3.
 
The Pioneers connected well on their three, second period scores, with Aydin Parekh (Nobleton, ON/Georgetown Raiders (OJHL)) picking up a team-high two assists and four other Pioneers each adding one playmaker in Aiden Hughes (Mississauga, ON/Milton Menace (OJHL)), Collin Patterson (Rockledge, FL/UMass Dartmouth (NCAA DIII)), Preston Brighton (Brighton, MI/Amarillo Wranglers (NAHL)), and Gabriel Lundberg (Gothenburg, Sweden/Janesville Jets (NAHL)).
 
Avery Sturtz (Cedar Rapids, IA/Maine Nordiques (NAHL)) played the majority of the match in net for the team, holding off the Knights for most of his icetime as he helped to weather the opponents' early energy. The junior logged 50 minutes in goal for the Pioneers, allowing three goals and grabbing 25 total saves.
 
Despite the final scoreline, the Pioneers still dominated on the draw, winning 47 of their 67 total faceoff opportunities thanks in large part to their top three centers. Breault had the most wins within the circle, capturing 18 of his 23 faceoff chances (78% win rate). Tio D'Addario (Montreal, QC/SUNY Plattsburgh (NCAA DIII)) and Andrew Della Rovere (Caledon East, ON/Georgetown Raiders (OJHL)) also fared well on their faceoffs with the former winning 11 of 15 total tries (73%) and the latter capturing 10 of his 12 opportunities (83%) from inside the circle.
 
The Pioneers had three power play opportunities in the outing, with Murphy cashing in on the middle advantage to complete the squad's only special teams conversion of the night.
 
Murphy was named to the All-Tournament team along with Pioneer defensemen Brian Scoville (Agawam, MA/Alabama-Huntsville (NCAA DI)).
 
The Pioneers did not secure the conference's autobid but currently sit at number four in the NCAA Percentage Index, the ranking that determines the at-large bids for the upcoming NCAA Division III tournament. The team is in pole position to secure an at-large bid, which will be announced during this Monday's selection show. The selection show will begin at 10:00 AM and can be streamed on the NCAA website or by following this link: 2025 NCAA Division III Men's Hockey Tournament Information
 
Should the Pioneers host, ticketing information will be released in the days following the announcement.